A few of Clemson’s top targets in the 2021 class attended Saturday’s game against Wake Forest at Death Valley, including Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Cardinal Gibbons wide receiver Troy Stellato.

It was Stellato’s first visit to Clemson, and it gave him the chance to spend time with head coach Dabo Swinney and co-offensive coordinator/receivers coach Jeff Scott.

“It was a really good time,” Stellato told The Clemson Insider. “I enjoyed it a lot, just meeting all the coaches and everything. I really like Coach Scott. He’s a really good guy and a really good coach. And obviously Coach Swinney, he was amazing, just meeting him and getting like 15 minutes to talk with him was really cool. It shows how much he cares about the players and about his organization and how he does an amazing job with running his program. I love the facilities and everything and the area … I enjoyed it a lot. It was a good time.”

Stellato (6-1, 175) netted one of Clemson’s few wide receiver offers in the 2021 class after Scott scouted him at one of his games in early October.

Scott and the coaching staff made Stellato feel like a big priority while he was on campus Saturday.

“That I was a top priority for them, and them offering me just shows how much they want me and how much they really like me because they don’t really throw around offers like that,” Stellato said of what he heard from the coaches. “They were telling me how much of a priority I was for them, and they were showing me a lot of love and how much they really like me as a player and as a person as well.”

During his visit, Stellato was able to meet Powder Springs (Ga.) McEachern wide receiver Dacari Collins, one of Clemson’s commits in the class of 2021.

“Me and him were talking for like 10, 15 minutes,” Stellato said. “We hit it off pretty good.”

Clemson receiver target Troy Stellato with co-offensive coordinator and receivers coach Jeff Scott

Last month, Stellato released a top 12 that included Clemson along with Alabama, Duke, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, LSU, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio State, Penn State and Southern Cal.

Stellato told us going into Saturday’s visit that he was still considering six or seven schools, including Clemson, Ohio State, Alabama and LSU.

He has also been to Alabama and Ohio State this season and plans to check out LSU when it plays Texas A&M on Nov. 30 if it doesn’t conflict with his high school football team’s schedule.

“I’m trying to,” he said. “We’re in the third round of the playoffs right now. That game would be our state championship week, so if we’re still playing I probably won’t be able to make it because we’ll have practice the next day and I can’t miss that. So, it just depends if we’re still playing or not.”

When Stellato looks at Clemson as one of his college choices, the recent success of Swinney’s program sticks out to him.

“The last three, four years they’ve been the most winning program in college football, so just walking around their facilities and meeting all the coaches and what they’re all about really stood out to me because they’ve been really successful,” Stellato said. “Coach Swinney, all those guys, the way that they’ve been handling their program for these last years, and I think they’re only just starting. So, they’re looking really good right now and I enjoyed all the coaching staff and everyone a lot.”

Clemson’s proven history of sending receivers to the NFL on a consistent basis really appeals to Stellato as well.

“They produce a lot of really good receivers in the NFL. They’ve had a lot more than a lot of colleges,” he said. “Coach Scott, he’s been producing all those guys, so that really says a lot and that’s a huge plus. He produced a guy like (Hunter) Renfrow who’s like a god at Clemson. That’s crazy, and they produce a lot of really good receivers – (DeAndre) Hopkins, Sammy Watkins, (Adam) Humphries. Them saying to me that I could join that group, they’re really confident that could happen and they have the background, they can back it up for sure.”

Stellato, who ran a 4.42 40-yard dash at The Opening Miami regional in February, has no real timetable for his decision but does not want to drag out the recruiting process.

The Tigers are a strong contender in Stellato’s recruitment after making a great impression on him Saturday.

“The visit was really good. It opened my eyes a lot,” he said. “I don’t see the point of waiting a whole long time. After the season, I’m going to take that month and really probably figure out a plan. Because by then, I think I’ll see everywhere that I really need to see before making my decision. So, it’s coming sooner rather than later.”

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